Page 9 of Reckless Rival

Her deep brown eyes followed his until he looked away right after blowing her a kiss and throwing a wink at her.

Was that a tease? Why was he doing that to her?

Chapter 4

“This is the day I waited for, for so long,” Nami said, looking at the sign on the auditorium entrance that read, ‘Simha University.’ It was the day of the commencement speech, and she could not wait to hear from the dean of the university, Neelima Raj.

This woman was the sole reason the university’s fame had reached international levels to the point where the exchange program was organized with universities like Yale, Cambridge, and other prestigious colleges around the world. She was glad she chose to go to Cambridge because she could then attend Simha for one semester as an exchange student.

How I wish I could graduate from Simha University!

“Nami, call me when you are back in the apartment,” Ramya instructed and added with a glint in her eyes. “We have a few parties to attend off campus this evening.”

Nami shook her head. “Do I have to?”

Ramya leaned closer. “Yes. No way out.”

Working hard and playing harder was part of the Simha culture. She had to live up to that as well. “Maybe for a little bit.”

“Not happening.” Ramya wasn’t going to take no for an answer. “These are the most happening ones, and they go on until five in the morning. No ghost appearances.” Her cousin wagged a finger at her.

Oh Lord, do I need to stay up until five to live up to the culture?

“I have to attend classes tomorrow. I need to get some sleep.” Nami was not convinced.

“Stop being stuck-up. You can catch up on your sleep after the classes. Now go,” Ramya urged.

Nami wanted to get to know people and build relationships, but most importantly, she wanted to focus on the education and the required extracurricular activities that were required to be a well- rounded Simha student. She walked down the circular hallway toward the entrance of the auditorium.

Nami let out a gasp, taking in the beautiful architecture of the wide fan-seating-style space. She could tell the auditorium could fit thousands of students if needed, and the structure brought every seat as close as possible to the stage.

She walked down the aisle seeing some familiar faces she had seen and met on the campus over the past few days but didn't stop to talk. She wanted to get to her seat and could not wait for the commencement speech she had only heard about from Ramya.

“May I see your ID, please?” The person at the checkpoint validated Nami’s ID on her phone.

“Oh, an exchange student… from Cambridge,” the person said with a smile, looking at the ID and scanning it. “Welcome to Simha University, Miss Varma. The newcomers are seated at the very front. Your seat is at stage level. Please follow the orange lane to the staff member, and they will show you your seat.”

Nami was finding it hard to contain her excitement. “Thank you so much.”

As the other students found their seats, she made her way to the stage level closest to the podium. There was one girl who was seated in the row, and she figured she must be new or maybe even an exchange student like her.

She sat down in her designated seat, one away from the girl. She leaned to her right so the other gal could hear her.

“Hello, I’m Namrata,” she said to the girl with a grin. “I’m an exchange student. How about you?”

The girl turned, a blank look on her face, with an unreadable expression. “Samantha.”

Samantha turned to look away like she was least interested in talking to her.

Nami decided to keep to herself, and a short while later, another girl came to take the seat that was between her and Samantha.

Unsure of how the students were at Simha or if it was etiquette not to talk while waiting for the commencement speech, she stayed quiet. A moment later, she heard the girl next to her initiate a conversation with Samatha and got the same cold response.

The girl next to Nami turned in her direction. “Hi, I’m Ava.”

Nami’s excitement knew no bounds. “I’m Namrata.” Nami wanted to chat more, but the lights were dimmed in preparation for the commencement event.

Neelima Raj, the university dean, walked onto the stage, and all Nami could think of was to scream, ‘Thank You’ at the top of her lungs for creating the exchange program with Cambridge and inviting her to be a part of it.

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